Reading, Cuddling, Riding Titans
by bondageluvr
Summary: The Survey Corps go on a mission, Levi gets cold and Eren gets protective. Ereri. Part of my Bucket List Series


**Author's Note: **So here's Part 3 of my Bucket List series. Hope you all enjoy, and if you do – please review!

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><p>It wasn't long before a new mission was launched. Inspired by the questionable success of Annie's equally questionable arrest, the government decided not to play with fire; that is to say, not to allow the Survey Corps to grow in popularity more than they already had, and put aside some of the financing intended for the restoration of Stohess to buy several scores of new horses for Erwin's soldiers. It had been made very clear, however, that the mission would have to succeed, or at least turn out with minimal losses, for the Scouting Legion to survive reformation.<p>

Which was why Eren was lying flat on his back inside his tent, trying to get some shut-eye before they would start out again at the crack of dawn, and trying to ignore the light coming from Levi's improvised fire he'd started in a cleaned-out can of soup, as the older man seemed engrossed in a thick tome he'd made Eren carry in his own pack all the way to their settlement. Finally, he gave up on slipping into the comforting embrace of sleep and turned to look at the Corporal.

"Could you please kill the fire? I'm trying to sleep."

"Could you please shut up? I'm trying to read," came the acerbic reply, and Eren groaned in frustration. Levi was incorrigible as always, especially so in the past few weeks after they'd established their strange relationship in some sort of framework or another. The man would take him to bed and _teach _him new things, but as far as other things on their lists went, Eren was getting nowhere. He supposed he had to be thankful for the fact that Levi even considered him as a potential bedmate to begin with, however, he did not appreciate being pushed around like a little child.

"What are you reading?" He asked quietly, turning onto his side and propping himself up on his elbow. While he had been cursed with sharing a tent with the Corporal – a safety measure, according to the older man himself, – he thought he might as well have some fun and take away from this experience.

"It's a book on politics, brat. Too complex to get through your thick skull, I imagine," Levi said irritably, and Eren huffed in annoyance.

"Try me. I'm not stupid, you know. I learned to read. I even went to school."

"Good for you, get yourself a medal for that."

"You know what, _Levi_? Screw you," Eren said with an air of finality and turned over, his back now facing the older man, his shoulders tense.

The Corporal looked up from his reading and sighed. Jäger was becoming increasingly more edgy as time went by. Levi tried to convince himself that it wasn't his fault, necessarily, as he thought he had made it absolutely, perfectly, _crystal_ clear that he was not looking for a loving, cutesy relationship with the boy. More so while they were on a mission.

"Eren?" He said tentatively, watching the back that was turned to him quiver with badly-disguised anger and resignation.

"Oh, it's Eren now, is it?" The boy mumbled and Levi had to stifle a laugh. It was a miracle that the brat had survived this long, with him being so hotheaded and touchy. Levi put the book down and inched closer to the boy, watching as his breath rose in puffs, standing out against the cool air inside the tent. Levi could not imagine what the other soldiers were doing to keep warm – he had been lucky enough to have staked a claim on Eren, and the boy, due to his titan-shifting abilities, was like a furnace, radiating heat. Even so, Levi tried to avoid sticking any unnecessary body parts outside the safe haven of his blankets.

Which was why Eren yelped in surprise when he felt a pair of arms hug him from behind and encircle his waist, bringing his back close against a solid chest.

"Quiet, brat, do you want to wake the entire camp?"

"So what, I'm your personal heater now?" Eren bit back, his heart pounding. He did not want to be put into a vulnerable position with Levi. And yet there he was, bent awkwardly as he tried to fit into Levi's smaller-turned-bigger spoon, the weight of his Corporal's arms around him a notable presence on his skin. Levi was definitely not one for cuddling, as Eren had been bitter to discover after their nighttime meetings in the older man's quarters. More often than not, Eren would be immediately kicked out of the Corporal's room, barely having the time to put on his clothes. Despite the fact that Levi was practically using him so that his own toes would not fall off because of the cold, Eren couldn't help but relax into the touch. Even though he was a cold, mean bastard most of the time, there was something about Levi that comforted Eren. Perhaps it was what had brought the young man to him to begin with – the fact that he would be the only one able to slay Eren if he ever lost control. That he was the only person in the entire Survey Corps who did not look as if they were walking on broken glass with Eren around. It wasn't that Levi was careless, necessarily, it was just that he had seen a lot, too much, to be surprised or frightened.

"You know, Jäger… I think I will lend you that book once I'm finished with it."

_Oh. _

"Er… thanks, sir." Eren did not really know how to respond to that. His eyes widened at the realization: he'd put down _read a big book _on the list he'd shown Levi. And Levi was actually going through with his end of the deal. "I'll take good care of it."

"You better. And we _will _discuss it afterwards to see that you've read it properly," Levi said shortly and buried his face between Eren's shoulder-blades, feeling his frozen nose prickle with pins and needles.

"Levi?"

"Yes?"

"Wouldn't it be… um, better if I… er, hugged you? I mean, because of the difference in–,"

"Height," Levi finished testily and felt Eren's entire body tense up in his arms. Eren knew better than most people just how touchy Levi was about his shortness, and the boy was as drawn as tight as a string when Levi slipped his arms from around him and turned his back to the titan shifter. "What are you waiting for? I'm fucking freezing, Jäger."

Not quite believing his luck, Eren settled around Levi, encompassing him in his body heat. Levi was surprisingly quick to settle down, as the warmth spread all over his skin, to his fingers and the very roots of his hair. Eren was surely a handy addition to any mission that involved sleeping in cold tents.

As he fell asleep, Eren watching his Corporal's face relax slowly, the constant knot of his eyebrows coming apart. He looked really young suddenly, too young to have done the things that Eren knew he had done. Feeling protective all of a sudden, Eren gathered Levi closer to himself and settled his head onto the pillow, inhaling the earthy smell of his Corporal's hair.

"You know," he breathed, "this should have been on my list."

There was a pause, and for a moment Eren thought Levi had fallen asleep. He was about to sign himself over to sleep, when–,

"Mine as well."

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><p>They set off from camp at the break of dawn the next morning, with Eren barely able to keep his eyes open as he mounted his horse. He'd spent the major part of his night wide awake, watching the older man sleep – not that he would ever admit to it. Levi, on the other hand, was uncharacteristically perky, something that both unsettled and encouraged the rest of the squad, who were unused to seeing their leader quite this energetic – positively so. Levi was normally a destructive force, a dark cloud of grey among them, with the shadows under his eyes emphasizing his terse character and usually foul mood. This morning, however, it was as if he'd slept better than he'd had in years. The squad didn't question it, they were happy enough to enjoy it while it lasted.<p>

Eren hated the woods. The last time they had been there, a lot of their companions had been killed, and the backdrop of the trees made it difficult to see oncoming danger. _Better than the open field, where there is nothing to hang on to, _Eren supposed, as he followed closely behind Levi on his horse. Mikasa was hovering somewhere behind his left elbow, and he could feel her sharp eyes watching every move his Corporal made. The young woman was too intuitive for her own good – she clearly knew something was going on between the two of them, and she was vying to find out what it was. Eren remembered Levi's warning: _this stays secret, otherwise it's over_. He was not going to give Mikasa reasons to suspect any kind of relationship he had outside of work with Levi.

As they reached the edge of the forest, Eren could feel the rest of his squad become edgy. Horses stumbled and whinnied more and more, and he felt the back of his neck prickling with anxious anticipation. A droplet of sweat worked its way down his temple. They were entering dangerous territory, where their gear was essentially useless. Eren saw Levi's hands squeeze the reigns tighter, a look of determination on his face.

"Now, people, remember: we are only here to explore possible titan-infested areas. Do not engage if possible, you hear me?" Levi called out, and a chorus of _yes, sir! _rang out, the sound dying away quickly as it got lost among the leaves and branches. Eren closed his eyes and took a breath: one… _two… _

Suddenly, the sun hit their eyes and they were forced to shield them for a moment as their pupils adapted to the unusual brightness of the morning. The field was quiet, with not a titan in sight, and Eren could physically feel relief flood his body, like a warm evening shower after a long, tense day. He could see that Levi was pleasantly surprised himself, his grip on the reigns relaxing a little.

"We go on until mid-afternoon!" He yelled back at his men, and their horses galloped towards the open space in front of them.

This was what Eren had joined the Survey Corps for – this feeling of unconfined _freedom_, no walls to bind them to some place or another, just an open plane with no end in sight. He let the cool breeze kiss his skin, his hair whipping as the squad followed Levi's leadership onward. A content smile settled over his lips and he turned to look at the Corporal, who was watching him from the corner of his eye, his expression amused. A slight nod indicated that _he knew_, he understood what Eren was feeling, having been confined to the underground for so many years. It was still a miracle to any of them that they were able to venture outside, that they had the privilege of seeing things the people inside the walls could not even dream of. Despite the fact that danger followed hot on their heels, at such moments, they felt as though they were free.

The afternoon passed quickly and all they did was see more and more fields with the occasional ruined village emerging on the line of the horizon from time to time. They never ventured inside the villages, as there was really nothing to see there – a bunch of broken homes and rotting skeletons, for those who had been questionably lucky to die their own deaths instead of having been eaten by the titans.

Gradually, the sun had reached its peak and was beginning its descent back to the edge of the earth. Levi turned the squad around at about three in the afternoon, knowing it would take several hours to get back, and they would have to start heading to the camp if they wanted to make it before nightfall. A few disappointed groans followed his order and he couldn't help but relate a little: after all, even the air in the open felt as though it were completely different from the air they breathed in the confines of the walls, or even at camp. Nevertheless, he was proud of the fact that no men had been lost on their way here, and he was intent on keeping it that way. A clean report would mean less bullshit for Erwin and, by extension, for himself.

Just as the thought crossed his mind, he heard a roar. _Fantastic. _

The squad turned their heads just in time to see three titans charging towards them, their ugly faces blank, tongues hanging out. Levi scrunched up his nose in distaste. There went his good day.

"Lead them to the forest!" He shouted to his people and spurred his horse to go faster. As unintelligent as they were, the titans were quick, and their huge legs covered the distance of the field in no time. He turned back to look at the three titans and realized they were catching up. "They're abnormals! They're fast!"

_Too fast_. Levi felt Eren coil like a spring next to him, and he shot the boy a look.

"Don't even think about it."

"They're gaining on us, we can't possibly reach the forest before–,"

"Fuck, Jäger, shut up and listen to orders for once!"

Eren closed his mouth with a snap. The look that passed between them clearly indicated that he recalled the last time he'd made the wrong decision on a mission.

The horses were quickly exhausting themselves as they galloped towards the forest, but both Eren and Levi knew it was no use. The squad was nearly there and Levi found himself falling back to make sure all his men made it out of the open field. He saw a flash of brown hair and angrily realized Eren had followed him. _Damn it, brat! I don't need your protection!_

He was wrong, though. He realized that when he was yanked off his horse by the skirt of his cape and dangled from between two giant fingers like a marionette. He faintly heard Eren shout his name as he was whipped through the air. Levi tried to reach for his blades, but the way his cape tugged on his chest made it impossible for him to do so. Desperate, he clawed at the air, even when he felt the stench of the titan's breath hit him, as he was held over the creature's mouth, expecting to be dropped in.

The next thing he knew, there was a flash of light and he was falling, falling from the monster's hands and towards the ground. But he was free. In an attempt to save his neck from snapping, Levi twisted in mid-air like a cat and reached for his gear, aiming it towards the only thing that could help him hold on – the titan itself. He anchored his harpoon in the creatures shin and skirted along it, landing on the ground with a thud.

Levi ran for cover behind a huge boulder and watched as Eren's titan socked his attacker in the jaw so hard its head was whipped clean off its neck. Eyes wide, he listened as Eren's angry roar seemed to resonate across the open field. Looking sideways, he saw his squad stand petrified at the edge of the forest. _Go in, you idiots! _But they were too far to hear him, and he had no horse, only a rock to hide behind, and Eren, who was making his way to the two other titans, his heavy feet landing on the ground with thuds so strong they shook the earth. He made quick work of the other two titans, who could not compare to his resilience or his force, and soon a victorious yell threatened to burst Levi's eardrums. With a sigh, he got out from behind the rock, knowing he would have to cut Eren free of his titan. Slowly, carefully, he stood from the ground and took a couple of steps towards the titan, his entire body tense in preparation for battle with the unreasonable creature.

It did not attack. It simply stopped in the middle of the field, the quickly evaporating corpses of the other titans at its feet. As Levi approached, the titan did the unthinkable – it sank to its knees heavily in front of the Corporal, and bent its neck down in submission. Levi had never seen Eren act like this before – even when he was most conscious in his titan form, murderous insanity ingrained in his genetics tended to take over. Now, however, the creature looked down at him with unexplainably _human _eyes and, cautiously, trying not to spook the Corporal, it reached out its hand to him, settling its huge knuckles onto the ground in front of Levi.

For a moment, it seemed as though the world was completely silent. The squad watched with baited breath as Levi looked up at the titan, puzzled. His eyes widened when he realized what it was doing. What it was offering to him. And what it was asking him to do.

_Trust me._

And Levi did. He carefully sheathed his blades at his belt and stepped onto the hard pad of Eren's palm. He whipped out his thick gloves from his pocket and put them on, so that he wouldn't get burned as he hung on to Eren's thumb. He felt wind whipping through his hair as he was raised off the ground and to the level of Eren's face as the enormous titan stood to its full height. Levi looked down. Eren sure had a nice view from here.

"Take us to the camp," he said to the titan, his eyes narrowed. He didn't need to worry, though, as the titan nodded at him in complete comprehension and turned towards the forest. The first several steps caused panic among the rest of the squad, but Levi looked down at them – the tiny ants that they were, and yelled:

"It's all right! Jäger will escort us to the camp! Mount your horses and let's move!"

The heavy, rhythmic fall of Eren's titan feet lulled Levi into a peaceful state as he stood in the palm of Eren's hand, feeling the big titan eyes on him as they travelled through the forest. He glanced up at the titan with disdain.

"Bet you feel all important now."

He let out a disgusted yelp as he was covered in titan spit when Eren let out a roar that sounded suspiciously like laughter.

"You're on laundry duty for another month, Jäger."

He fell ungracefully on his rear into the middle of the titan's palm as Eren's body shook with another chuckle.

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><p>When Eren was cut out from his titan's neck upon arrival to camp, he was exhausted. The marks on his face seemed to be so deep that they would not heal – though Levi knew they would, thanks to the brat's incredibly envy-worthy abilities.<p>

Eren mumbled a refusal to go to the medics, so Levi instead took him to the tent they shared on the edge of camp. He half-dragged the younger man to his makeshift bed and covered him with his blankets, settling down next to him. Eren's eyes were half open when Levi pressed a wet cloth to his forehead, his face alight with unusual concern for the kid. The trip today must have taxed the brat pretty damn hard.

"Feels nice," Eren mumbled.

"Shut up, you brat, go to sleep," Levi said, his voice lacking its usual sharp edge.

"Not this," Eren muttered, his tongue thick in his mouth.

"Then what?"

"You trusting me. Feels nice."


End file.
